Intricate Waltz
by Inky Slumber
Summary: Once upon a time, there was a fangirl who fell asleep and entered the world of Ouran... - - pairings undecided - - roughly follows anime
1. Chapter 1

Another night of tossing and turning inevitably led me to the point I was at now – plugging in my headphones with the stealth of an elephant in the dead of night, my brother asleep across the hall, and my laptop booting up. I pulled out a box of chocolate pocky, trying to open it silently, knowing that even with my door shut and my parents at the other end of the house, that I'd somehow be heard. By some miracle, I remained undiscovered, and I clicked the folder on my desktop labeled 'Anime (Dubbed)'. Scrolling through the multitude of links straight to the first episodes of some of my favorite anime, I swiftly double-clicked the link that would take me to the first episode of Ouran High School Host Club. Usually, I would watch the subbed version, but for tonight I just wanted to listen. Starting the video, I smiled and snuggled into my blanket, cocooned around my tucked-up figure.

I began to doze off, it seemed, as Haruhi was making her way to the Third Music Room for the first time. Footsteps invaded my senses, and I opened my eyes to see the elegant and inviting pinks and yellows of Ouran Academy's halls. This was not the first time I'd dreamt of Ouran, but it was my first time truly falling asleep while watching the anime. Usually, I just zoned out. I had closed my eyes again, only to feel someone shaking my shoulder. While my conscious mind recognized that I was hearing the anime playing in my headphones and feeling someone, likely my mother, shaking me, my unconscious mind interpreted this as a part of my dream. With bleary eyes, I looked to see who was shaking me. To my surprise, it was a commoner-dressed Haruhi.

"Ah!" I exclaimed, nearly jumping out of my skin, causing the girl, who did look an awful lot like a boy, to jump back in shock, making a similar exclamation.

"S-Sorry!" she apologized, and I rapidly shook my head.

"No, it was my faul-" I paused, mouth agape, as I realized I was speaking fluently in another language. I assumed it was Japanese, simply because of the setting, and wondered when I had absorbed so much of a language I was teaching myself. Gaining an odd look from Haruhi, I laughed nervously. "I thought I was still dreaming, sorry," I explained, and she nodded.

I looked down, surprised to see myself in the male uniform. My voice didn't sound any different, though, but I had a feeling I looked different, because I was lacking quite a bit of familiar weight on my chest and my stomach felt unusually flat. My face heated up as I wondered if perhaps I'd gained another male aspect, and a choked sound, which I soon recognized as coming from myself, could be heard.

"Are you alright?" Haruhi interrupted, still squatting in front of me.

My head snapped up. "Yeah, I'm still waking up," I lied, the words coming easily.

Haruhi stood, brushing off her clothes. Putting out her hand, she introduced herself as she helped me up.

"My name is Fujioka Haruhi," she introduced with a slight bow. "Sorry for waking you."

"Oh, that's alright! I'm uhm-" I could feel myself begin to sweat as I realized I couldn't remember my name – but then it came to me. "Sasaki Kaede."

"Are you sure you're feeling alright, Sasaki-kun?" Haruhi checked, peering closer at my face and moving a hand to my forehead. I felt my face flush more, and my mouth moved like a fish's before noise finally came out.

"Perhaps not," I admitted, stepping back and wiping my sweaty palms on my pants. "But it's probably just my blood sugar," I added with another nervous laugh, remembering Haruhi's tendencies.

Haruhi nodded, a thoughtful look on her face. At least, I think it was thoughtful, although it was hard to tell with the glare on her obnoxious glasses.

"Ah, by the way, do you know any good place to study?" she asked with a slight frown, her unspoken unease with the state of the libraries flashing through my mind.

"No." I answered honestly, but then remembered something. If this was the day Haruhi was to meet the Host Club, then there was no harm in helping her along. "But I think the Third Music Room is abandoned."

"Oh!" Haruhi responded, smiling a bit. "Thank you!" She looked around, as if to leave, and I chuckled.

"I can take you there?" I offered, although I honestly had no idea where it was. It must've shown in my voice, because Haruhi gave me a puzzled look.

"Do you even know where it is?" she asked in a deadpan voice.

"Erm, no," I admitted. "But wandering this school alone…" I grumbled, drifting off.

"You're lost, too!" Haruhi realized, more dead-on than she probably realized. "Well, we can look together," she suggested with a large smile.

I mirrored her smile, and looked around. "Which direction did you come from?"

"That way," she told me, gesturing to her left while I nodded.

"We'll go this way, then," I decided, and it was her turn to nod.

We walked in silence for a while, the empty hall filled with our echoing footsteps. We'd glance at the signs above the doors as we passed, sighing when it wasn't the right one. However, we kept walking. I was glad Haruhi wasn't trying to make small talk with me, and she seemed equally relieved that I wasn't trying, either. It probably would've been more awkward than my growing discomfort with not knowing what I looked like, given my suddenly fit body and the male uniform I was wearing.

"Ah!" I exclaimed, halting Haruhi, who was staring down at what seemed to be a map while grumbling to herself.

"Hmm?" She looked up, and then saw the sign. "Oh!"

I turned to her, grinning. "Found it!" We laughed, each grabbing a door handle, and pushing open the giant double doors.

"Welcome!" A chorus of male voices greeted us, a flurry of red rose petals flying at our faces as well. Hesitantly, Haruhi stepped in, and I followed her on automatic, the doors closing behind us.

"H-Host Club?" Haruhi stuttered while I stood with my mouth agape.

"Oh, it's a pair of boys," a pair of auburn-haired twins chorused, looking bored.

"Hikaru and Kaoru, they're in the same class as you, correct?" a boy with black hair and glasses asked, turning to the twins I knew to be the Hitachiin brothers.

"Yeah, but one of them has amnesia, and the other one isn't very sociable, so we don't know them too well," they responded together.

"That's awfully rude," Kyoya, the one with glasses, chastised. He then turned back to myself and Haruhi, I trying to recall what I was doing before I was blinded by such…_arrogance_…and Haruhi frantic to get out. "Welcome to Ouran Host Club, Honor Student and…company."

"What?" Tamaki interrupted, popping up from his seat. "You're Fujioka Haruhi, then?" he asked, gesturing in our direction.

At last, I found my voice. "Which one of us?" I asked as I pulled my hair out of the low ponytail it was in before tying it back again.

"Why, the commoner, of course!" Tamaki responded, aghast.

"Of course," I agreed sarcastically.

Kyoya scribbled in his notebook, while Takashi and Mitsukuni were off to the side, staring in a way that unnerved me.

"Huh? How do you know my name?" Haruhi asked, turning and looking at the Host Club again.

"Our school tradition makes it difficult for commoners to get in," Kyoya explained. "It's rumoured that unless you possess a rather audacious nerve, you cannot become an honor student here."

"Thank you…?" Haruhi responded, her statement coming out as more of a question.

Suddenly, Tamaki was in between us, and I jumped out of my skin, skittering off to the side. However, the action seemed to go unnoticed by the blonde, as well as Haruhi.

"Yes! You are a hero, Fujioka-kun! You might be at the head of the class, but you are still the poorest person in the whole school," Tamaki explained dramatically. "You're probably looked down upon!"

"No, I wouldn't go _that _far," Haruhi argued as she slid from his grasp.

"It doesn't matter, does it? Long live the poor!" the Host Club's self-proclaimed king declared. "Welcome to our world of beauty!" His conclusion was followed with an array of sparkles, and I coughed.

"We should be going, right, Fujioka-kun?" I asked, making my way back over while I eyed a piece of bright pink hair that had been on the hair tie.

"Yes! Excuse us!" Haruhi agreed, reaching for the door.

Our plan to leave was quickly thwarted by Mitsukuni and Takashi, the latter putting a restraining hand on my shoulder while the former pulled Haruhi away.

"Hey, Haru-chan, Haru-chan, so you're a hero? Amazing!" Mitsukuni cheered, and I could've sworn I heard Takashi sigh as I did.

Haruhi dug her feet into the ground. "I'm not a hero – I'm an honor student," she corrected before realizing something. "And who are you calling 'Haru-chan'?" she growled.

Mituskuni released Haruhi, stumbling over to myself and Takashi. Looking up at us with teary eyes, I felt my eye twitch in irritation. He was cute, and I usually would coo over someone like him. So why was I irritated? With a 'hmph' I shrugged off Takashi's now loose hand, heading over to Haruhi as Tamaki wiggled his way back into the picture.

"To think, that the fabled honor student would be gay…" he sighed. "And he even has himself a supportive friend!"

"Gay?" Haruhi mumbled to herself, while I tried to hide my laughter as a coughing fit.

"What is your preference?" Tamaki asked, not even giving Haruhi a chance to tell him that wasn't why she was here. Instead, he began listing off the types while gesturing to each host. "The wild type? The boy Lolita type? The little devil type? The cool type?"

"I-It's not like that!" Haruhi managed to get out, although it didn't deter Tamaki, instead seeming to encourage him.

Then again, he _was _an idiot.

"We were just looking for a quiet place for Fujioka-kun to study," I sighed, scratching my head. "Not a clown troupe."

"What? A clown troupe?" Suddenly, the Hitachiin twins were on either side of me while Haruhi was harassed further by Tamaki. "We're not clowns!"

"Could've fooled me," I responded, ignoring my growing anxiety to instead poke one of the boys in the nose. He blinked in surprise, while the other twin stared at me, unamused.

Our staring contest was interrupted when Haruhi cried out, and the following moment was in slow motion. A gorgeous vase as thrown off its pedestal, crashing to the ground, Haruhi centimeters from grabbing one of the handles before it hit.

"Ah, that Renaissance vase was going to be featured in the school auction!" These words came from the now-recovered twins, who were hanging over Haruhi.

"Now you've done it," one twin said in a bored tone.

"We were going to start the bidding at 8 million yen for that," the other twin agreed in the same tone.

"8 million yen?!" Haruhi cried out, horrified. She proceeded to mutter to herself while I watched with a frown, eyeing my clothes then looking to Kyoya, and then to Haruhi and the broke vase. "Um, I can pay you back?" she offered, voice unsure.

"Could you even?" the twins argued with smiles on their faces at last, finally seeming to be amused by something. "You can't even afford the designated uniform," they pointed out.

"But I can," I interrupted, my voice not wavering, to my own surprise. "I mean, I do go here, after all," I added, flipping back some loose hair. An 'ooh' came from who I assumed was Mitsukuni, and I added a smile. I was letting myself do what came naturally – and struggling to remember a number of things – which seemed to be, well, this.

"But you didn't break the vase, Sasaki-kun," Kyoya pointed out, before turning to Tamaki. "What will it be, Tamaki?"

Tamaki took a seat after throwing me an irritated look, crossing his legs in what seemed to be a stylish manner and putting on a smile. "Have you ever heard this saying, Fujioka-kun? 'When in Rome, do as the Romans do!' If you have no money, then pay with your body." He was completely ignoring me now, and Haruhi looked incredibly pale. "Starting today, you are the Host Club's dog!"

I watched as my brunette companion completely froze up, a look of disbelief on her face while she lost all of her color.

"Ah, so cruel, Suou-senpai," I sighed, drawing some attention away from Haruhi.

"And why are you here, anyways?" Hikaru, I assumed, pointed out rudely.

"Yeah, aren't you supposed to be catching up on your studies?" Kaoru, the other one, chimed in.

I gritted my teeth and took a deep breath, before smiling. "Well, I'm with the honor student, am I not?"

"Ahh…" The twins had no argument for that, it seemed, and turned to each other with a shrug.

"You escaped your nurse again because you didn't recognize her, correct?" Kyoya asked, opening a file that I hadn't noticed before. "These bouts of amnesia are dangerous, you know."

"I'd rather be in school," I bit out, grateful for the excuse for my lack of knowledge, but none too pleased that there was someone who'd know everything about me while I knew nothing.

"Well, let's get started, then!" Tamaki decided cheerfully as Haruhi collapsed to the floor when Mitsukuni poked her.

The Hitachiin twins began to usher me to the door, but I spun around and side-stepped them. "No thanks, I'm staying."

They looked ready to argue, but Kyoya interrupted.

"We can't very well send him out there on his own," he pointed out.

"Oh yeah," one of the twins agreed, the other catching on quickly.

"He did need an honor student to find his way here, didn't he?" the other twin pointed out.

I could feel my irritation rising, and I lunged at the twins, only to be caught mid-jump and set in a chair, Mitsukuni suddenly in my face.

"Poor Kaede-chan!" Mitsukuni sniffled. "We'll take good care of you!"

Immediately, I knew this nightmare was not likely to end any time soon.


	2. Chapter 2

Mitsukuni seemed to have made it his job to take care of me, starting with giving me a plate of cake, then proceeding to introduce me to each of the hosts. I was told to hold his Usa-chan as he did so, then he bounced off to help his cousin take care of Haruhi, who they knew shouldn't be left on the floor. Sitting in the chair awkwardly, I took in my surroundings. What was the fastest way out of here? Perhaps I should've gone to the nurse's office – if they even had one – instead of trying to push the plot. I must've been pretty deep in thought, because when I refocused on what was happening around me, it was because hands had slammed down on my shoulders.

"Hey hey, a little spacey, aren't you?" one of the twins asked, and I racked my brain with how to tell them apart. However, I was at a loss, and simply sighed.

"Probably because he's got pink hair," the other twin suggested in a less-than-friendly fashion as he tugged on my ponytail.

I felt my lips turn upward, but it wasn't in a friendly smile, I knew. "At least I'm not compensating for a lack of self-confidence by bullying others," I shot back.

Immediately, the two hands lifted from my shoulders.

"What?" they chorused, stepping around to stand in front of me rather than behind me. "And you're one to judge?"

"Well I certainly don't know," I responded with a shrug.

"Please stop picking on Sasaki-kun," Kyoya told the Hitachiin brothers, although there was clearly an underlying threat that made this more of a demand than a request. "If you trigger an episode, we're going to have to deal with his parents."

"Fine," Hikaru and Kaoru agreed, turning on their heels to walk away. "We were just trying to get to know him."

"Mhm," I mumbled, not agreeing in the slightest. Sighing, I stood, setting Usa-chan where I'd been sitting. "This is grand and all, but I hardly know who I am." With that pointed out, I looked to Kyoya. "Ootori-san?" I asked, not bothering to voice the question.

Kyoya sighed. "Sasaki Kaede, age sixteen, class 1-A," he began. "Well known for his prowess in sports, with the family business lying in travel. Second in line for inheriting the family business, with an elder brother ahead of him. Seems to hold more interest in becoming a professional model, and got in a gymnastics accident three weeks prior to today."

"Well aren't you just a wealth of information," I chuckled. "Thank you, Ootori-san."

With a smirk, Kyoya adjusted his glasses and nodded before retreating to what I assumed to be his own personal area. It was, for lack of better words, dark. Suppressing a shudder, I turned my attention to the other hosts. Haruhi seemed to have recovered at last, and if I wasn't mistaken, it must've been time to open, because Kyoya had closed his laptop and headed over to their original setup when Haruhi and I had first entered.

With the Host Club now open for business, Haruhi was sent off to get coffee, and I was ordered to sit back and relax. Rather bored, I propped myself up on the nearest windowsill, and let my mind drift. Everything was fuzzy, between what I'd been doing before waking up in the halls of Ouran Academy and why this dream wasn't jumping around like other ones. With each passing moment I felt more and more like a person with amnesia should, and I hated it. But there was little I could do other than focus on my thoughts and memories – if they were even such – as I lost touch with reality, or perhaps gained a hold on it. Feeling a headache coming on, I sighed and scratched my head. This was so _complicated_.

"Uhm…Sasaki-kun?" a timid female voice caused my gaze to snap away and land on a couple of girls who looked rather nervous, blushing profusely.

"Yes?" I responded, one eyebrow rising.

"Would you like to have some tea with us?" the other girl asked, fidgeting.

Surprise flickered across my face, and I nodded. "That would be nice, thank you."

The girls' eyes lit up, and I rose from my seat. Following them over to a vacant table, I didn't miss Kyoya's calculating gaze following us. He made his way over to Tamaki as we sat, Haruhi bringing over some tea, and I watched as he whispered something in the blonde's ear. To his credit, he tried to be discreet about looking up as I looked away, but I held his gaze with my own the second our eyes met. Paling he looked away, clutching his chest, while I laughed softly.

My company looked at me with curious eyes, and I smiled kindly. "Suou-senpai seems to be jealous," I explained in a slight whisper, leaning forward. Their mouths formed small 'o's, and I swear I heard Haruhi snort before heading back to the sidelines. I leaned back, fiddling with the tea cup for a moment while the girls had some heated discussion with their eyes. Finally, they looked back over to me.

"S-Sasaki-kun?" the shyer girl said to get my attention. I looked at her and nodded. "We…we were wondering if you were going to join the Host Club?"

I couldn't help but grin, and failed to contain my laughter, which came out as a choked noise. Struggling to compose myself, I focused on the embarrassed girls. "I actually hadn't considered it, to be honest," I explained. "Isn't something I'd need to be invited into?"

The girls seemed to loosen up a bit when they realized I wasn't laughing at them, so much as the idea of being a host. "Oh, but Tamaki-kun is so kind…"

"It's up to him, really," I pointed out with a shrug, my eyes flickering over to Tamaki, unsurprised to see him watching again, before falling back on the girls. "And please, call me Kaede."

"Ah, alright, Kaede-kun!" the girls agreed, nodding.

I took the moment of them starting another silent conversation to really look at the girls, feeling bad that I hadn't given them much notice before. One of them, the shy one, had ebony hair that waved and curled, but only went down to her shoulders. She had soft green eyes, and porcelain skin. The other, who wasn't as shy, but was definitely nervous, had golden brown hair that went down to about mid-back, and hazel eyes. Her skin was a bit more of a peachy color.

Jumping slightly in my seat when I realized I'd been caught staring, I averted my eyes to the tea cup, hastily drinking some of the surprisingly sweet tea. From their seats across from me, I heard the girls giggle as I made a face, not only at how sweet it was, but at how hot it was. Mitsukuni and Takashi seemed to have entered again at some point, I noticed, when I saw Haruhi now the victim of Usa-chan. She seemed to be in a conversation with Kyoya, the black-haired boy giving off a menacing aura. Tamaki entered shortly after, looking quite smug, and I sighed. Turning back to the girls who had requested I had tea with them, I let myself act naturally again. At least, what was natural for Kaede.

Smiling in what I assumed had turned out to be a charming manner, judging by the dazzled looks on the girls' faces, I struck up conversation again, taking a smaller sip of the tea. "So, what are your names?"

"O-Oh, I'm Arishima Suzume," the ebony-haired girl answered.

"I'm Tanaka Etsuko," the golden-haired girl added.

"Pleasure to meet you both," I told them with a nod of my head. They swooned, and I was concerned they'd pass out. "Would you ladies like me to get some more tea?" I offered, gesturing to their near-empty cups.

"Yes please!" the girls agreed quickly.

I stood, gathering the teacups in one spot on the table, and then heading over to an empty table with a tray. Taking the tray back over to Suzume and Etsuko I gathered our teacups on the tray and headed over towards Haruhi and Tamaki, Kyoya having moved away. Tamaki seemed to be on some spiel or another, and I sighed. He made his way over to Haruhi, and she realized something as he finally made it to her side.

"Obnoxious," Haruhi announced.

Tamaki froze, then proceeded to take up a depressed posed a distance away. The Hitachiin brothers, passing by, laughed, resting their arms on top of Haruhi's head. Haruhi struggled to make amends, tripping over her own words.

"I'm sorry. It did strike a small chord with me, though!" she apologized.

Immediately, Tamaki recovered. "I see! Then allow me to share more skills with you!" He spun around, reaching out his hand, sparkles flying from it.

"Tono…" one twin said with a sigh.

"Call me 'King'!" Tamaki demanded, beckoning with his fingers.

The same twin continued, regardless. "You can teach the basics of hosting all you want…"

"…but in his case, he hasn't even passed the first, most basic visual test," the other twin finished. "With someone of his type, even if you take off his glasses, his eyes will just look smaller-"

The twins, one of them having pulled off Haruhi's glasses, stared at the honor student with wide eyes. Haruhi began to complain, but I could hardly hear what she was saying over Tamaki's hurried footsteps. He flung the twins aside, stared at Haruhi for a moment, then snapped his fingers and began to bark out orders. I sighed, realizing I wasn't likely to get any tea now. Setting the tray down nearby, I strolled back over to Suzume and Etsuko, hands in my pockets.

"I'm sorry ladies, but the Host Club seems to be having an epiphany," I explained as I took my seat, glad to see the girls had calmed down quite a bit. "We'll just have to wait until they're done."

"It's alright, Kaede-kun," Suzume reassured me with a small smile. "We're fine just sitting with you."

I beamed at the obvious compliment, and leaned forward towards Suzume. "Thank you, Suzume-chan." Suzume swooned, and Etsuko struggled to keep her friend upright. I laughed softly, unable to help myself. "You're both so cute."

Both girls' faces heated up, and they muttered their thanks. The Host Club ended early, as was Tamaki's announcement, and I said my farewell to the girls, promising that I'd do what I could to hang around. Kyoya apparently contacted my nurse – whose name I didn't bother remembering – and told her where I was, leading to her scolding me, to which I let a few words slip.

"You're fired," I told her before climbing into the limousine that was waiting for me.

The nurse followed when I motioned her to, and the ride back to what I assumed to be my home was pretty quiet. I paid little attention to the passing scenery, blank eyes reflecting in the window I peered out. My eyes were blue-green, a rather charming color, although quite bold, and my hair was an even bolder pink. Frowning in distaste, I wished I had more control over this…_dream_. Sure, pink hair wasn't that bad, but so bright? That, I had a problem with. Perhaps Hikaru and Kaoru would be able to help me fix it.

If I was even here that long, of course.


End file.
